As with his previous films, Samsara is a non narrative film comprising of large format time lapse and panoramic shots throughout different locations around the world.

The journey the film takes the viewer on is truly something spectacular, with deeper messages found from scene to scene. It really leaves one to question many things such as humanities divorce from nature, human environmental impact, consumerism and animal rights.

Samsara has a great way of pulling you outwards to look at the big picture, the human race and its workings as if you were from another planet looking down on earth observing humans and their bizarre behaviour.

A truly amazing experience and must see film!

Oil of oregano is the oil carefully extracted from the oregano herb (origanum vulgare) which grows in abundance around the mountainous regions of the Mediterranean.

Its use stretches right back to the ancient Greeks, who used this powerful herb in treating illness and disease due to its high antibacterial, antimicrobial and antiviral properties.

Hypocrites himself was also very well aware of the healing properties of oregano oil and widely used the herb for treating people with stomach and respiratory ailments.

Oil of oregano is now widely available in most countries around the world. Much of it is sourced from Greece and Turkey where it is grown organically and then cold pressed to extract the oil. Because of the such potency of the oil it is commonly diluted down with 2 parts olive oil per 1 part oil of oregano.

The great thing about the oil is that it can be used both externally and internally for a wide range of health problems including candida, fungal infections, skin infections, eczema, psoriasis, herpes, viral attacks, teeth and gum problems, parasites and stomach ailments just to name a few!

Using oil of oregano on the skin

Oil of Oregano is extremely potent and is best to apply with a wet cotton wool ball when using on the skin, otherwise it may burn. If this occurs, wash off from your skin.

Wet a cotton wool ball and then add 1 drop of Oil of Oregano to it. Try applying the now diluted oregano oil on a small area of your skin area to see if you experience any side effects. If there are none, you can now safely apply it directly on your desired area – Always start small.

If redness develops on your skin, discontinue it for a couple of days. Then resume your treatment using lower doses of the oil or a higher dilution with water.

Do not use this product in eyes, nose and avoid contact with genital areas. If a rash or irritation occurs, discontinue use.

Using oil of oregano internally

Essential oils are composed of highly concentrated naturally occurring chemicals. Even herbs and natural forms of many plants are only beneficial in small quantities. This is true for Oil of Oregano.

Take 1 drop 3 times daily when needed for no more than 2 weeks. You can put it under your tongue or you can mix it with a glass of water, juice or tea.

Do not exceed the maximum dosage of 3 drops daily unless directed by your health care professional. The adage “less is more” is at work here. The liver must process the Oregano oil and will become overloaded if too large an amount is taken.

Make sure you drink plenty of water throughout the day and along with the dose. This will help flush out the toxins that are released to kill the pathogens.

Take a probiotic daily or have a diet rich in fermented foods whilst taking and after taking Oil of Oregano. This will ensure your levels of good bacteria and healthy gut flora stay at optimal levels.

Oil of Oregano may reduce the body’s ability to absorb iron. Therefore, it is recommended that any regular use be combined with regular consumption of iron supplements.

Warnings

Do not use if you are pregnant.

With regards to children caution should be taken when using oregano oil. Don’t let them swallow any amount of oil of oregano. Always follow the advice of your health provider in preparing a treatment using oregano oil. Topical application is the safest treatment for children.

Do not use this product in eyes, nose and avoid contact with genital areas. If a rash or irritation occurs, discontinue use.

People using alcohol regularly, have existing health problems or taking prescription drugs (especially blood thinners) should avoid using Oil of Oregano unless given the ok by a health care professional.

December 21st, 2012 is nearly upon us and with the date getting world wide attention from the hungry media and it’s message of ‘the end of the world’, many people are left wondering – what is this December 21st really all about?

I feel personally that this date actually has very little to do with the end of the world and more so to do with the positive awakening of many inhabitants on earth.

In the alternative field of research there’s been a lot of intuitive information about the alignment with the galactic center and the doorway opening to a new higher vibrational energy that is set to hit the earth.

This in turn affecting all inhabitants of Earth, making us more conscious of our actions, more loving towards one another and having a greater understanding of the big picture and who we truly are. The idea behind a new earth could well and truly be a reality many of us had not expected.

As for the Mayan Calendar, many people who seems to know little about how it actually works, have run off with the message that it’s predicting the end of the world. In actual fact the message that lies within the calendar is of a ‘new age’ of awakening and the positive transformation as a human race.

The Earth is not on the best of paths, that is clear to even the most ignorant of people. We still have senseless wars over religion and resources, we pollute the waters, land and air of our only home and we have a lingering sense of separation between us.

People are ‘waking up’ though in larger numbers than ever before. Is this due to the new vibrational energy hitting earth?

One thing is for certain – that our inner self, intuition and higher awareness has the answers to all these questions.

Here are a number of exercises and approaches in meditation which I often have used, adapting them from various methods to fit my own circumstances and preferences. Select the ones you like best and find the most suitable for your own self.

The value of each method will vary according to each person’s unique needs. Although these exercises are relatively easy, they form the foundations on which everything else is built.

Half-smile when you first wake up in the morning

Hang a branch, any other sign, or even the word “smile” on the ceiling or wall so that you see it right away when you open your eyes. This sign will serve as your reminder. Use these seconds before you get out of bed to take hold of your breath. Inhale and exhale three breaths gently while maintaining the half smile. Follow your breaths.

Half-smile during your free moments

Anywhere you find yourself sitting or standing, half-smile. Look at a child, a leaf, a painting on the wall, anything which is relatively still, and smile. Inhale and exhale quietly three times. Maintain the half smile and consider the spot of your attention as your own true nature.

Half-smile while listening to music

Listen to a piece of music for two or three minutes. Pay attention to the words, music, rhythm, and sentiments. Smile while watching your inhalations and exhalations.

Half-smile when irritated

When you realize you’re irritated, half-smile at once. Inhale and exhale quietly, maintaining the half smile for three breaths.

Letting go in a lying-down position

Lie on your back on a flat surface without the support of mattress or pillow. Keep your two arms loosely by your sides and your two legs slightly apart, stretched out before you. Maintain a half smile. Breathe in and out gently, keeping your attention focused on your breath. Let go of every muscle in your body. Relax each muscle as though it were sinking down through the floor or as though it were as soft and yielding as a piece of silk hanging in the breeze to dry.

Let go entirely, keeping your attention only on your breath and half smile. Think of yourself as a cat, completely relaxed before a warm fire, whose muscles yield without resistance to anyone’s touch. Continue for 15 breaths.

Letting go in the sitting position

Sit in the half or full lotus, or cross-legged, or your two legs folded beneath you, or even on a chair, your two feet touching the floor. Half smile. Inhale and exhale while maintaining the half smile. Let go.

Deep breathing

Lie on your back. Breathe evenly and gently, focusing your attention on the movement of your stomach. As you begin to breathe in, allow your stomach to rise in order to bring air into the lower half of your lungs. As the upper halves of your lungs begin to fill with air, your chest begins to rise and your stomach begins to lower. Don’t tire yourself. Continue for 10 breaths. The exhalation will be longer than the inhalation.

Measuring your breath by your footsteps

Walk slowly and leisurely in a garden, along a river, or on a village path. Breathe normally. Determine the length of your breath, the exhalation and the inhalation, by the number of your footsteps. Continue for a few minutes. Begin to lengthen your exhalation by one step. Do not force a longer inhalation. Let it be natural. Watch your inhalation carefully to see if there is a desire to lengthen it. Continue for 10 breaths.

Now lengthen the exhalation by one more footstep. Watch to see whether the inhalation also lengthens by one step or not. Only lengthen the inhalation when you feel that it will give delight. After 20 breaths, return your breath to normal. About five minutes later, you can begin the practice of lengthened breaths again. When you feel the least bit tired, return to normal. After several sessions of the practice of lengthened breath, your exhalation and inhalation will grow equal in length. Do not practice
long, equal breaths for mote than 10 to 20 breaths before returning to normal.

Counting your breath

Sit in the half or full lotus or take a walk. As you inhale, be mindful that “I am inhaling, one.” When you exhale, be mindful that “I am exhaling, one.” Remember to breathe from the stomach. When beginning the second inhalation, be mindful that “I am inhaling, two.” And slowly exhaling, be mindful that “I am exhaling, two.” Continue on up through 10. After you have reached 10, return to one. Whenever you lose count, return to one.

Following your breath while listening to music

Listen to a piece of music. Breathe long, light, and even breaths. Follow your breath, be master of it while remaining aware of the movement and sentiments of the music. Do not get lost in the music, but continue to be master of your breath and your self.

Following your breath while carrying on a conversation

Breathe long, light, and even breaths. Follow your breath while listening to a friend’s words and to your own replies. Continue as with the music.

Following the breath

Sit in a full or half lotus or go for a walk. Begin to inhale gently and normally (from the stomach), mindful that “I am inhaling normally.” Exhale in mindfulness, “I am exhaling normally.” Continue for three breaths. On the fourth breath, extend the inhalation, mindful that ”I am breathing in a long inhalation.” Exhale in mindfulness, “I am breathing out a long
exhalation.” Continue for three breaths.

Now follow your breath carefully, aware of every movement of your stomach and lungs. Follow the entrance and exit of air. Be mindful that “I am inhaling and following the inhalation from its beginning to its end. I am exhaling and following the exhalation from its beginning to its end.”

Continue for 20 breaths. Return to normal. After 5 minutes, repeat the exercise. Remember to maintain the half smile while breathing. Once you have mastered this exercise, move on to the next.

Breathing to quiet the mind and body to realize joy

Sit in the full or half lotus. Half-smile. Follow your breath. When your mind and body are quiet, continue to inhale and exhale very lightly, mindful that, “I am breathing in and making the breath-body light and peaceful. I am exhaling and making the breath-body light and peaceful.” Continue for three breaths, giving rise to the thought in mindfulness, “I am breathing in and making my entire body light and peaceful and joyous.” Continue for three breaths and in mindfulness give rise to the thought, “I am breathing in while my body and mind are peace and joy. I am breathing out while my body and mind are peace and joy.”

Maintain this thought in mindfulness from 5 to 30 minutes, or for an hour, according to your ability and to the time available to you. The beginning and end of the practice should be relaxed and gentle. When you want to stop, gently massage your eyes and face with your two hands and then massage the muscles in your legs before returning to a normal sitting position. Wait a moment before standing up.

Mindfulness of the positions of the body

This can be practiced in any time and place. Begin to focus your attention on your breath. Breathe quietly and more deeply than usual. Be mindful of the position of your body, whether you are walking, standing, lying, or sitting down. Know where you walk; where you stand; where you lie; where you sit. Be mind-ful of the purpose of your position. For example, you might be conscious that you are standing on a green hillside in order to refresh yourself, to practice breathing, or just to stand. If there is no purpose, be mindful that there is no purpose.

Mindfulness while making tea

Prepare a pot of tea to serve a guest or to drink by yourself. Do each movement slowly, in mindfulness. Do not let one detail of your movements go by without being mindful of it. Know that your hand lifts the pot by its handle. Know that you are pouring the fragrant warm tea into the cup. Follow each step in mindfulness. Breathe gently and more deeply than usual. Take hold of your breath if your mind strays.

Washing the dishes

Wash the dishes relaxingly, as though each bowl is an object of contemplation. Consider each bowl as sacred. Follow your breath to prevent your mind from straying. Do not try to hurry to get the job over with. Consider washing the dishes the most important thing in life. Washing the dishes is meditation. If you cannot wash the dishes in mindfulness, neither can you meditate while sitting in silence.

Washing clothes

Do not wash too many clothes at one time. Select only three or four articles of clothing. Find the most comfortable position to sit or stand so as to prevent a backache. Scrub the clothes relaxingly. Hold your attention on every movement of your hands and arms. Pay attention to the soap and water. When you have finished scrubbing and rinsing, your mind and body should feel as clean and fresh as your clothes.

Remember to maintain the half smile and take hold of your breath whenever your mind wanders.

Cleaning house

Divide your work into stages: straightening things and putting away books, scrubbing the toilet, scrubbing the bathroom, sweeping the floors and dusting. Allow a good length of time for each task. Move slowly, three times more slowly than usual. Fully focus your attention on each task. For example, while placing a book on the shelf, look at the book, be aware of what book it is, know that you are in the process of placing it on the shelf, intending to put it in that specific place. Know that your hand reaches for the book, and picks it up.

Avoid any abrupt or harsh movement. Maintain mindfulness of the breath, especially when your thoughts wander.

A slow-motion bath

Allow yourself 30 to 45 minutes to take a bath. Don’t hurry for even one second. From the moment you prepare the bathwater to the moment you put on clean clothes, let every motion be light and slow. Be attentive of every movement. Place your attention to every part of your body, without discrimination or fear. Be mindful of each stream of water on your body. By the time you’ve finished, your mind should feel as peaceful and light as your body. Follow your breath. Think of yourself as being in a clean and fragrant lotus pond in the summer.

The pebble

While sitting still and breathing slowly, think of yourself as a pebble which is falling through a clear stream. While sinking, there is no intention to guide your movement. Sink toward the spot of total rest on the gentle sand of the riverbed. Continue meditating on the pebble until your mind and body are at complete rest: a pebble resting on the sand.

Maintain this peace and joy a half hour while watching your breath. No thought about the past or future can pull you away from your present peace and joy. The universe exists in this present moment. No desire can pull you away from this present peace, not even the desire to become a Buddha or the desire to save all beings. Know that to become a Buddha and to save all beings can only be realized on the foundation of the pure peace of the present moment.

A day of mindfulness

Set aside one day of the week, any day that accords with your own situation. Forget the work you do during the other days. Do not organize any meetings or have friends over. Do only such simple work as house cleaning, cooking, washing clothes, and dusting.

Once the house is neat and clean, and all your things are in order, take a slow-motion bath. Afterwards, prepare and drink tea. You might read scripture or write letters to close friends. Afterwards, take a walk to practice breathing. While reading scripture or writing letters, maintain your mindfulness, don’t let the text or letter pull you away to somewhere else. While reading the sacred text, know what you are reading; while writing the letter, know what you are writing. Follow the same procedure as listening to music or conversing with a friend.

In the evening prepare yourself a light meal, perhaps only a little fruit or a glass of fruit juice. Sit in meditation for an hour before you go to bed. During the day, take two walks of a half hour to 45 minutes. Instead of reading before you go to bed, practice total relaxation for 5 to 10 minutes. Be master of your breathing. Breathe gently (the breath should not be too long), following the rising, the lowering of your stomach and chest, your eyes closed. Every movement during this day should be at least two times slower than usual.

Contemplation on interdependence

Find a photo of yourself as a child. Sit in the full or half lotus. Begin to follow your breath. After 20 breaths, begin to focus your attention on the photo in front of you. Recreate and live again the five aggregates of which you were made up at the time the photo was taken: the physical characteristics of your body, your feelings, perceptions, mind functionings, and consciousness at that age. Continue to follow your breath. Do not let your memories lure you away or overcome you. Maintain this meditation for 15 minutes. Maintain the half smile.

Turn your mindfulness to your present self. Be conscious of your body, feelings, perceptions, mind functionings, and consciousness in the present moment. See the five aggregates which make up yourself. Ask the question, “Who am I?” The question should be deeply rooted in you, like a new seed nestled deep in the soft earth and damp with water. The question “Who am I?” should not be an abstract question to consider with your discursive intellect.

The question ”Who am I” will not be confined to your intellect, but to the care of the whole of the five aggregates. Don’t try to seek an intellectual answer. Contemplate for 10 minutes, maintaining light but deep breath to prevent being pulled away by philosophical reflection.

Yourself

Sit in a dark room by yourself, or alone by a river at night, or anywhere else where there is solitude. Begin to take hold of your breath. Give rise to the thought, “I will use my finger to point at myself,” and then instead of pointing at your body, point away in the opposite direction.

Contemplate seeing yourself outside of your bodily form. Contemplate seeing your bodily form present before you-in the trees, the grass and leaves, the river. Be mindful that you are in the universe and the universe is in you: if the universe is, you are; if you are, the universe is.

There is no birth. There is no death. There is no coming. There is no going. Maintain the half smile. Take hold of your breath. Contemplate for 10 to 20 minutes.

Your skeleton

Lie on a bed, or on a mat or on the grass in a position in which you are comfortable. Don’t use a pillow. Begin to take hold of your breath. Imagine all that is left of your body is a white skeleton lying on the face of the earth. Maintain the half smile and continue to follow your breath. Imagine that all your flesh has decomposed and is gone, that your skeleton is now lying in the earth 80 years after burial. See clearly the bones of your head, back, your ribs, your hip bones, leg and arm bones, finger bones. Maintain the half smile, breathe very lightly, your heart and mind serene. See that your skeleton is not you. Your bodily form is not you.

Be at one with life. Live eternally in the trees and grass, in other people, in the birds and other beasts, in the sky, in the ocean waves. Your skeleton is only one part of you. You are present everywhere and in every moment. You are not only a bodily form, or even feelings, thoughts, actions, and knowledge. Continue for 20 to 30 minutes.

Your true visage before you were born

In the full or half lotus follow your breath. Concentrate on the point of your life’s beginning – A. Know that it is also the point of beginning of your death. See that both your life and death are manifested at the same time: this is because that is, this could not have been if that were not. See that the existence of your life and death depend on each other: one is the foundation of the other. See that you are at the same time your life and your death; that the two are not enemies but two aspects of the same reality. Then concentrate on the point of ending of the twofold manifestation – B, which is wrongly called death.

See that it is the ending point of the manifestation of both your life and your death. See that there is no difference before A and
after B. Search for your true face in the periods before A and after B.

A loved one who has died

On a chair or bed, sit or lie in a position you feel comfortable in. Begin to take hold of your breath. Contemplate the body of a loved one who has died, whether a few months or several years ago. Know clearly that all the flesh of the person has decomposed and only a skeleton remains lying quietly beneath the earth. Know clearly that your own flesh is still here and in yourself are still converged the five aggregates of bodily form, feeling, perception, mental functionings, and consciousness. Think of your interaction with that person in the past and right now. Maintain the half smile and take hold of your breath. Contemplate this way for 15 minutes.

Emptiness

Sit in the full or half lotus. Begin to regulate your breath. Contemplate the nature of emptiness in the assembly of the five aggregates: bodily form, feeling, perception, mind functionings, and consciousness. Pass from considering one aggregate to another. See that all transform, are impermanent and without self.

The assembly of the five aggregates is like the assembly of all phenomena: all obey the law of interdependence. Their corning together and disbanding from one another resembles the gathering and vanishing of clouds around the peaks of mountains. Neither cling to nor reject the five aggregates. Know that like and dislike are phenomena which belong to the assemblage of the five aggregates. See clearly that the five aggregates are without self and are empty, but that they are also wondrous, wondrous as is each phenomenon in the universe, wondrous as the life which is present everywhere.

Try to see that the five aggregates do not really undergo creation and destruction for they themselves are ultimate reality. Try to see by this contemplation that impermanence is a concept, nonself is a concept, emptiness is a concept, so that you will not become imprisoned in the concepts of impermanence, non-self, and emptiness. You will see that emptiness is also empty, and that the ultimate reality of emptiness is no different from the ultimate reality of the five aggregates. (This exercise should be practiced only after the student has thoroughly practiced the previous five exercises. The amount of time will be according to the individual-perhaps one hour, perhaps two.)

Compassion for the person you dislike or despise the most

Sit quietly. Breathe and smile the half smile. Contemplate the image of the person who has caused you the most suffering. Regard the features you hate or despise the most or find the most repulsive. Try to examine what makes this person happy and what causes suffering in his daily life. Contemplate the person’s perceptions; try to see what patterns of thought and reason this person follows.

Examine what motivates this person’s hopes and actions. Finally consider the person’s consciousness. See whether his views and insights are open and free or not, and whether or not he has been influenced by any prejudices, narrow-mindedness, hatred, or anger. See whether or not he is master of himself. Continue until you feel compassion rise in your heart like a well filling with fresh water and your anger and resentment disappear. Practice this exercise many times on the same person.

Suffering caused by the lack of wisdom

Sit in the full or half lotus. Begin to follow your breath. Choose the situation of a person, family, or society which is suffering the most of any you know. This will be the object of your contemplation.

In the case of a person, try to see every suffering which that person is undergoing. Begin with the suffering of bodily form (sickness, poverty, physical pain) and then proceed to the suffering caused by feelings (internal conflicts, fear, hatred, jealousy, a tortured conscience). Consider next the suffering caused by perceptions (pessimism, dwelling on his problems with a dark and narrow viewpoint). See whether his mind functionings are motivated by fear, discouragement, despair, or hatred. See whether or not his consciousness is shut off because of his situation, because of his suffering, because of the people around him, his education, propaganda, or a lack of control of his own self.

Meditate on all these sufferings until your heart fills with compassion like a well of fresh water, and you are able to see that the person suffers because of circumstances and ignorance. Resolve to help that person get out of his present situation through the most silent and unpretentious means possible.

In the case of a family, follow the same method. Go through all the sufferings of one person and then on to the next person until you have examined the sufferings of the entire family. See that their sufferings are your own. See that it is not possible to reproach even one person in that group. See that you must help them liberate themselves from their present situation by the most silent and unpretentious means possible.

In the case of a society, take the situation of a country suffering war or any other situation of injustice. Try to see that every person involved
in the conflict is a victim. See that no person, including all those in warring parties or in what appear to be opposing sides, desires the suffering to continue. See that it is not only one or a few persons who are to blame for the situation.

See that the situation is possible because of the clinging to ideologies and to an unjust world economic system which is upheld by every person through ignorance or through lack of resolve to change it. See that two sides in a conflict are ‘not really opposing, but two aspects of the same reality. See that the most essential thing is life and that killing or oppressing one another will not solve anything.

Meditate until every reproach and hatred disappears, and compassion and love rise like a well of fresh water within you. Vow to work for awareness and reconciliation by the most silent and unpretentious means possible.

Detached action

Sit in the full or half lotus. Follow your breath. Take a project in rural development or any other project which you consider important, as the subject of your contemplation. Examine the purpose of the work, the methods to be used, and the people involved. Consider first the purpose of the project. See that the work is to serve, to alleviate suffering, to respond to compassion, not to satisfy the desire for praise or recognition. See that the methods used encourage cooperation between humans. Don’t consider the project as an act of charity. Consider
the people involved. Do you still see in terms of ones who serve and ones who benefit?

If you can still see who are the ones serving and who are the ones benefiting, your work is for the sake of yourself and the workers, and not for the sake of service. The Prajnaparamita Sutra says, “The Bodhisattva helps row living beings to the other shore but in fact no living beings are being helped to the other shore.”

Determine to work in the spirit of detached action;-

Detachment

Sit in the full or half lotus. Follow your breath. Recall the most significant achievements in your life and examine each of them. Examine your talent, your virtue, your capacity, the convergence of favorable conditions that have led to success. Examine the complacency and the arrogance that have arisen from the feeling that you are the main cause for such success. Shed the light of interdependence on the whole matter to see that the achievement is not really yours but the convergence of various conditions beyond your reach. See to it that you will not be bound to these achievements. Only when you can relinquish them can you really be free and no longer assailed by them.

Recall the bitterest failures in your life and examine each of them. Examine your talent, your virtue, your capacity, and the absence of favourable conditions that led to the failures. Examine to see all the complexes that have arisen within you from the feeling that you are not capable of realizing success. Shed the light of interdependence on the whole matter to see that failures cannot be accounted for by your inability’s but rather by the lack of favourable conditions. See that you have no strength to shoulder these failures, that these failures are not your own self. See to it that you are free from them.

Only when you can relinquish them can you really be free and no longer assailed by them.

Contemplation on non-abandonment

Sit in the full or half lotus. Follow your breath. Apply one of the exercises on interdependence: yourself, your skeleton, or one who has died.

See that everything is impermanent and without eternal identity. See that although things are impermanent and without lasting identity, they are nonetheless wondrous. While you are not bound by the conditioned, neither are you bound by the non-conditioned. See that the saint, though he is not caught by the teaching of interdependence, neither does he get away from the teaching.

Although he can abandon the teaching as if it were cold ashes, still he can dwell in it and not be drowned. He is like a boat upon the water.

Contemplate to see that awakened people, while not being enslaved by the work of serving living beings, never abandon their work of serving living beings.

This text is part of the book ‘The Miracle of Mindfulness” by Thich Nhat Hanh

Albert Einstein

History of Monsanto

Monsanto was started in St. Louis, Missouri in 1901 by John Francis Queeny, whose background was in the pharmaceutical industry. Beginning as it would continue, the first product made by Monsanto was saccharin, a controversial artificial sweetener now banned in many countries for its links to cancer.

Over the last century, Monsanto was responsible for bringing many controversial substances to the market:

•  Saccharin
•  Agent Orange
•  DDT
•  Aspartame
•  Bovine Growth Hormone

Initially a chemical company, it wasn’t until 1982 that Monsanto branched into agriculture, immediately tying the chemical background to the formerly wholesome business of growing food. Monsanto was determined to improve on nature and by the late 1980s had begun trials with genetically modified crops.

Monsanto in the Courtroom & Government

Monsanto is no stranger to either side of the courtroom. In effort to eradicate the family farm, Monsanto has taken many farmers to court for patent infringement. Farms unfortunate enough to be downwind of Monsanto have been sued because of cross-pollination with Monsanto plants from neighbouring farms. Because these farmers did not purchase seeds from Monsanto, they were “stealing” the benefits of this genetic engineering, and thus, successfully sued until they lost their businesses to the greedy company.

Farmers have incurred millions of dollars in judgements, sometimes even being required to pay for Monsanto’s investigation of their crops and Monsanto’s legal expenses. According to the Center for Food Safety, the odds are stacked against the farmers. “Monsanto has an annual budget of $10 million dollars and a staff of 75 devoted solely to investigating and prosecuting farmers.”

Monsanto has been in the defendant’s seat as well. The chemical giant recently settled for an undisclosed amount with the residents of Nitro, West Virginia in a class action lawsuit over the production of the carcinogenic chemical 2,4,5-T, an ingredient in herbicides and pesticides, as well as the banned “Agent Orange.”

Part of the reason Monsanto has been so successful in the courtroom has been the company’s incestuous ties to the US de facto government. Despite the blatant conflicts of interest, Monsanto executives have held Cabinet, judicial and policy-making positions in the Bush, Clinton and Obama administrations.

Monsanto’s collusion goes further than mere ties with government. The power-mad and wealthy seem to be magnetically drawn to the company.

Recently, public depopulation proponent Bill Gates bought half a million shares in Monsanto and began “gifting” Monsanto seeds to farmers in Third World countries. These farmers will be permanently tied to Monsanto, as the self-terminating seeds will have to be repurchased every year.

Monsanto’s Board of Directors has ties to corporate giants such as McDonalds, Cisco Systems, Sara Lee, Lockheed Martin and Proctor and Gamble, to name a few.

Monsanto also has sponsored exhibits at Disneyworld and Disneyland.

Monsanto Destroying Health

Perhaps the most disturbing issue with Monsanto and their products is the fact that the genetically engineered food is simply untested – we don’t know the full repercussions from eating this stuff.

Animal studies in Europe have proven that animals fed a GMO diet are more likely to suffer from organ failure. The study concluded:

[quote style="boxed" ]It is unacceptable to submit 500 million Europeans and several billions of consumers worldwide to the new pesticide GM-derived foods or feed, this being done without more controls (if any) than the only 3-month-long toxicological tests.[/quote]
Other studies have shown disturbing results like stomach lesions, increased risk of anaphylactic shock, increased antibiotic resistance, and toxins in the bloodstreams of newborns.

We aren’t allowed to be warned about GMOs either. Although Obama promised labeling of GMO foods appearing at your local grocery store, it’s yet another campaign promise that has never been fulfilled. The state of Vermont is currently being sued by Monsanto for labeling GMO foods. The FDA has also refused to force GMO producers to label their food. At this point, the only way you can be sure you are getting your food as nature intended it is to pay high prices for organic foods.

Latest Monsanto Developments

•  In September 2011, Monsanto Company silently purchased Beelogics, one of the world’s leading research firms dedicated to restoring bee health. Now, studies have come out showing evidence that the pollen released from Monsanto’s genetically modified corn may actually be contributing to the worldwide decline of bee populations. In short, a company that was independently looking at the collapse of bee colonies and believing that pesticides and GMO development may be a contributory factor is now owned by the primary multi-national company that creates those products likely contributing to the bee die-off.

•  Poland announced a monumental ban on Monsanto’s genetically engineered corn, stating the correlation between the GMO crop and the worldwide decline of bee populations as one of the primary reasons for banning the GMO crop. Poland’s ban brought to light the fact that the pollen from the GMO corn, along with the pesticides used on the crop, may actually be contributing to the further decimation of bees. The country’s decision also brought attention  to Monsanto’s purchase of Beelogics.

•  Leaks have emerged of a notice in the cafeteria of a Monsanto pharmaceutical factory in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, advising customers:

[quote style="boxed" ]As far as practicable, GM soya and maize has been removed from all food products served in our restaurant. We have taken the steps to ensure that you, the customer, can feel confident in the food we serve.[/quote]
The public has made its concerns about GM ingredients very clear – now it appears that even Monsanto’s own catering firm has no confidence in this new technology!

What Can I Do To Stop Monsanto?

1. Get Informed about GM foods and what Monsanto is doing. Watch the documentary ‘The World According to Monsanto‘.
2. Grow your own food using heirloom seeds and eco friendly organic farming methods.
3. Buy certified organic foods (they do not contain GMO) and when buying non organic foods check the ingredients to see if it contains anything that is genetically modified. Keep in mind that mandatory labelling of GMO foods is only a requirement in European Union countries, Japan, China, Australia and New Zealand. If you are not in one of those countries buy 100% organic and No-GMO labelled products.
4. Inform others about GMO’s and their harm to the environment, animals & human health.
5. If your state or country does not require mandatory labelling of GM ingredients create or sign a petition, write letters and make phone calls to your government to put pressure on them. People in the United Sates can sign one of many petitions here.

What we may not realize it that the powerful have specific tools or principles to use to con the rest of us into surrendering our power to them. One of the most effective principles used in the last several years with great success is the Hegelian Principle.

Put simply, in public relation terms, Problem > Reaction > Solution is a technique used when trying to sell something to the public, such as taking away freedoms, or passing legislation’s that under normal circumstances, the general public would not agree to. It is a strong mechanism that has allowed the Illuminati to operate and rule over us so easily.

The principle is simple, consisting of only three steps toward a preconceived goal. Once you are able to see how it works, you may want to analyze many of the events unfolding around you in terms of this principle. As the principle is often used today, it can be explained as:

Step One: Create a problem or conflict – Perceive a problem that exists and build it up out of proportion to its actual importance, or create a problem or conflict where none existed before.

Step Two: Publicize the problem and create opposition to it – Relentlessly place stories about this problem in the major media outlets. Report on it daily until it becomes a steady drumbeat and a truism for the public who then begin clamoring for a solution to this problem.

Step Three: Offer a solution – The best solutions are those that appeal to the emotions of the public and make them think something really good is being done for them, when in fact, something really bad is being done to them. This solution is one that the public never knew it needed until the conditioning of Step Two was successfully completed.

A good example of the principle is the so called ‘war on terror’. First a series of false flag terror attacks are created. Information is then spread that certain countries are housing ‘terrorists’ and ‘weapons of mass destruction’. The public reacts in fear and supports the war and invasion of those countries. The solution being that more civil liberties are taken away from the people with totalarian laws to so called ‘protect the people against the evil terrorists’. The benefits are endless for those in power, including the ability to run the entire country, it’s people and the resources.

“Today Americans would be outraged if U.N. troops entered Los Angeles to restore order; tomorrow they will be grateful. This is especially true if they were told there was an outside threat from beyond, whether real or promulgated, that threatened our very existence. It is then that all peoples of the world will plead with world leaders to deliver them from this evil. The one thing every man fears is the unknown. When presented with this scenario, individual rights will be willingly relinquished for the guarantee of their well being granted to them by their world government.”
(Henry Kissinger speaking at Evian, France, May 21, 1992 Bilderberg meeting. Unbeknownst to Kissinger, his speech was taped by a Swiss delegate to the meeting.)

When someone says or does something that makes us angry, we suffer. We tend to say or do something back to make the other suffer, with the hope that we will suffer less. We think, “I want to punish you, I want to make you suffer because you have made me suffer. And when I see you suffer a lot, I will feel better.”

Many of us are inclined to believe in such a childish practice. The fact is that when you make the other suffer, he will try to find relief by making you suffer more. The result is an escalation of suffering on both sides. Both of you need compassion and help. Neither of you needs punishment.

When you get angry, go back to yourself, and take very good care of your anger. And when someone makes you suffer, go back and take care of your suffering, your anger. Do not say or do anything. Whatever you say or do in a state of anger may cause more damage in your relationship. Most of us don’t do that. We don’t want to go back to ourselves. We want to follow the other person in order to punish him or her.

If your house is on fire, the most urgent thing to do is to go back and try to put out the fire, not to run after the person you believe to be the arsonist. If you run after the person you suspect has burned your house, your house will burn down while you are chasing him or her. That is not wise. You must go back and put out the fire. So when you are angry, if you continue to interact with or argue with the other person, if you try to punish her, you are acting exactly like someone who runs after the arsonist while everything goes up in flames.

Discovering The True Nature of Your Anger

At the moment you become angry, you tend to believe that your misery has been created by another person. You blame him or her for all your suffering. But by looking deeply, you may realize that the seed of anger in you is the main cause of your suffering.

Many other people, confronted with the same situation, would not get angry like you. They hear the same words, they see the same situation, and yet they are able to stay calm and not be carried away. Why do you get angry so easily? You may get angry very easily because your seed of anger is too strong. And because you have not practiced the methods for taking good care of your anger, the seed of anger has been watered too often in the past.

All of us have a seed of anger in the depth of our consciousness. But in some of us, that seed of anger is bigger than our other seeds—like love or compassion. The seed of anger may be bigger because we have not practiced in the past. When we begin to cultivate the energy of mindfulness, the first insight we have is that the main cause of our suffering, of our misery, is not the other person, it is the seed of anger in us. Then we will stop blaming the other person for causing all our suffering. We realize she or he is only a secondary cause.

Occupying The Living Room

Our blocks of pain, sorrow, anger, and despair always want to come up into our mind consciousness, into our living room, because they have grown big and need our attention. They want to emerge, but we don’t want them to come up because they are painful to look at. So we try to block their way. We want them to stay asleep down in the basement. Because we do not want to face them, our habit is to fill our living room with other guests. But whenever we have ten or fifteen minutes of free time, and we don’t know what to do, these internal knots will come up and make a mess in the living room.

To avoid this, we pick up a book, we turn on the television, we go for a drive, we do anything to keep our living room occupied. When the living room is occupied, these unpleasant internal formations will not come up.

All mental formations need to circulate, but we don’t want them to come up because we don’t want to feel the pain. We want them to stay locked away. We are very afraid, because we believe that if we allow them to come up, we will suffer a lot.

That is why our daily habit is to fill up the living room with guests, like television, books, magazines, and conversations, in order to keep these internal formations from surfacing. When we continue to do this, we create bad circulation in our psyche, and symptoms of mental illness and depression begin to appear. They may manifest in our body or in our mind.

Sometimes when we have a headache, we take aspirin, but our headache does not go away. This kind of headache can be a symptom of mental illness. Sometimes we have allergies. We think that it is a physical problem, but allergies can also be a symptom of mental illness. We are advised by doctors to take drugs, and so we continue to suppress our internal formations, making our sickness worse.

Embracing Anger

The Buddha never advised us to suppress our anger. He taught us to go back to ourselves and take good care of it. When something is physically wrong with us, in our intestines, our stomach, or our liver, we have to stop and take good care of them. We do some massage, we use a hot-water bottle, we do everything possible in order to take care of them.

Just like our organs, our anger is part of us. When we are angry, we have to go back to ourselves and take good care of our anger. We cannot say, “Go away anger, you have to go away. I don’t want you.” When you have a stomachache, you don’t say, “I don’t want you stomach, go away.” No, you take care of it. In the same way, we have to embrace and take good care of our anger. We recognize it as it is, embrace it, and smile. The energy that helps us do these things is mindfulness, mindfulness of walking and mindfulness of breathing.

Zones of Energy

We know that when anger is present in us we should refrain from reacting, namely from speaking, or doing anything. To say something, to do something while you are angry is not wise. We are urged to go back to ourselves in order to take good care of our anger.

Anger is a zone of energy in us. It is part of us. It is a suffering baby that we have to take care of. The best way to do this is to generate another zone of energy that can embrace and take care of our anger. The second zone of energy is the energy of mindfulness. Mindfulness is the energy of the Buddha.

It is available to us, and we are capable of generating it through mindful breathing and mindful walking. The Buddha within is not a mere concept. The Buddha within is not a theory or a notion. It is a reality, because all of us are capable of generating the energy of mindfulness.

Mindfulness means to be present, to be aware of what is going on. This energy is very crucial for the practice. The energy of mindfulness is like a big brother, big sister, or a mother, holding the younger one in her arms, taking good care of the suffering baby, which is our anger, despair, or jealousy.

Energy Zone One is anger, and Energy Zone Two is mindfulness. The practice is to use the energy of mindfulness to recognize and embrace the energy of anger. You have to do it tenderly, without violence. This is not an act of suppressing our anger. Mindfulness is you and anger is also you, so you shouldn’t transform yourself into a battlefield, one side fighting the other. You should not believe that mindfulness is good and correct, while anger is evil and wrong. You should not think like that. You only need to recognize that anger is a negative energy and that mindfulness is a positive one. Then you can use the positive energy in order to take care of the negative one.

Treating Anger With Tenderness

Mindfulness does not fight anger or despair. Mindfulness is there in order to recognize. To be mindful of something is to recognize that something is there in the present moment.

Mindfulness is the capacity of being aware of what is going on in the present moment. “Breathing in I know that anger has manifested in me; breathing out I smile towards my anger.”This is not an act of suppression or of fighting. It is an act of recognizing. Once we recognize our anger, we embrace it with a lot of awareness, a lot of tenderness.

When it is cold in your room, you turn on the heater, and the heater begins to send out waves of hot air. The cold air doesn’t have to leave the room for the room to become warm. The cold air is embraced by the hot air and becomes warm there’s no fighting at all between them. We practice taking care of our anger in the same way.

Mindfulness recognizes anger, is aware of its presence, accepts and allows it to be there. Mindfulness is like a big brother who does not suppress his younger brother’s suffering. He simply says, “Dear brother, I’m here for you.” You take your younger brother in your arms and you comfort him. This is exactly our practice.

Imagine a mother getting angry with her baby and hitting him when he cries. That mother does not know that she and her baby are one. We are mothers of our anger, and we have to help our baby, our anger, not fight and destroy it. Our anger is us, and our compassion is also us. To meditate does not mean to fight. In Buddhism, the practice of meditation should be the practice of embracing and transforming, not of fighting.

Anger Wisdom from the book Anger by Thich Nhat Hanh

“Coconut water is the very stuff of Nature, biologically Pure, full of Natural Sugars, Salts, and Vitamins to ward off fatigue and is the next wave of energy drinks, BUT natural” – According to Mortin Satin, head of the United Nation’s Food & Agriculture Organization.

When harvested, the young coconuts exterior is cut off revealing its inner white husk. They are then cling wrapped and sold for drinking. Due to the excellent filtration of the outer husk layer, the water inside is extremely purified.

Each young nut contains around 200 to 1000 ml of water, depending on the type and size. Any nuts younger than 5 months old tend to be bitter in taste and devoid of nutrients. Whereas, older nuts have less water and their endosperm becomes thicker as white edible meat (kernel).

Coconut water is unlike water itself, as it contains many trace minerals, vitamins, electrolytes, enzymes, amino acids, cytokines and phyto-hormones that are highly beneficial to the body, to help detox and hydrate. The water is also highly alkalizing, helping to increase the bodies ph for better overall health and wellbeing.

Despite the waters very light consistency, it has a much better composition of minerals like calcium, iron, manganese, magnesium, and zinc than other fruits like oranges.

The naturally occurring bioactive enzymes such as acid phosphatase, catalase, dehydrogenase, diastase, peroxidase and RNA polymerases aid in digestion and metabolism, whilst cytokinins (kinetin and trans-zeatin) in coconut water showed significant anti-ageing, anti-carcinogenic, and anti-thrombotic effects.

With a high concentration of potassium and low sodium content, coconut water may help to lower high blood pressure, as blood pressure is regulated in part by a balance of potassium and sodium within the cells.

The health benefits of coconut water extend to the way you look and feel. For example, coconut water adds moisture to your skin helping hydrate it from the inside out. It may also help promote weight maintenance or loss since it contains fiber, which slows the absorptions of the sugars that lead to fat-storage. And speaking of sugar, coconut water has less total sugar as well as calories in comparison with other sports drinks, so your intake will be less.

Some other coconut water health benefits include:

- Kidney stone prevention and treatment
- Anti-viral, -fungal, and -bacterial properties
- Acid reflux prevention
- Digestion aid

Facts

1. It’s a natural isotonic beverage, with the same level of electrolytic balance as we have in our blood. It’s the fluid of life, so to speak.

2. During the Pacific War of 1941-45, both sides in the conflict regularly used coconut water – siphoned directly from the nut – to give emergency plasma transfusions to wounded soldiers..

3. Most coconut water is still consumed fresh in tropical coastal areas – once exposed to air, the liquid rapidly loses most of its organoleptic and nutritional characteristics, and begins to ferment.

4. Coconut Water is More Nutritious than whole milk – Less fat and NO cholesterol!

5. Coconut Water is More Healthy than Orange Juice – Much lower calories

6. Coconut Water is Better than processed baby milk- It contains lauric acid, which is present in human mother’s milk

7. Coconut water is naturally sterile — Water permeates though the filtering husk!

8. Coconut water is a universal donor– Its identical to human blood plasma

9. Coconut Water is a Natural Isotonic Beverage – The same level we have in our blood.

10. Coconut water has saved lives in 3rd world countries thru Coconut IV.

11. Coconut water is the very stuff of Nature, biologically Pure, full of Natural Sugars, Salts, and Vitamins to ward off fatigue… and is the next wave of energy drinks BUT natural!’, according to Mortin Satin, Chief of the United Nation’s Food & Agriculture Organization.

12. Coconut water contains more potassium (at about 294 mg) than most sports drinks (117 mg) and most energy drinks..

13. Coconut water has less sodium (25mg) where sports drinks have around 41mg and energy drinks have about 200mg!

14. Coconut water has 5mg of Natural Sugars where sports and energy drinks range from 10-25mg of Altered Sugars.

15. Coconut water is very high in Chloride at 118mg; compared to sports drinks at about 39mg.